Twisted Rage
by Powerofmind99
Summary: When the Kyuubi is sealed within Naruto, it's sealed deep. Naruto will never gain the Kyuubi’s powers, but what other tainted powers has this change unleashed? AU, unsurprisingly. Naruto-centric. Rating may jump up to M... considerably later.
1. Prologue

Twisted Rage: Prologue

When the Kyuubi is sealed within Naruto, it is sealed permanently. Naruto will never gain the Kyuubi's powers, but what other tainted powers has this change unleashed? AU, what a surprise. Naruto-centric.

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, but this idea is mine.

* * *

"What! You can't do this to yourself, Minato! You can't do this to your wife, to your child!" The former Hokage, the Professor, was pleading with the Fourth as they awaited the delivery of his son. They had turned a few heads, but none had heard what Minato said.

"You can't make me change my mind, Sandaime-sama. I'm doing what must be done. You don't know the seal well enough to perform the rite properly, and I couldn't ask someone else to do my work for me." The blond seemed almost dejected, as though he was resigned to this fate before they even knew it would happen.

In any other time, or place, Hiruzen might have been complacent, knowing what Minato said was correct. But that wasn't the case now. They were in a hospital, there were Yamanaka present. With a little power abuse, Hiruzen could have Minato out cold and do a memory transfer within five minutes. He sighed, acting as defeated as he could as he rushed through the hospital to find an uninjured Yamanaka.

* * *

A syringe, full of anesthetic, was about to make it's way into a patient's room as Hiruzen was going to find the Yamanaka he needed. _The patient can wait for his pain-killers. I need them more... _Snatching up the small tool, the Professor came across just the person he needed. "Inoichi-san, I need to call in that favor you promised." The man's eyes shifted slightly, and his voice was low. "Can it wait? My wife is having her ultrasound done, and if I'm not here when she's done, she won't tell me what my sweet baby's gender will be!" Hiruzen arched a brow. "It can't wait, and it won't, Inoichi-_san_." The man quietly complied.

* * *

Minato could still be seen waiting outside the delivery room, twiddling his fingers. A kind pat on the back later, and the syringe-full of morphine was in his system. He'd be out for the rest of the attack, at the very least. "Alright, Inoichi. You know what to do. Find the 'Shiki Fuujin' and transfer it to me." The Yamanaka nodded, a little afraid to be poking around the brain of his own kage.

As he searched through the mind of the famed Yellow Flash, he came upon what was needed. It was a bit foggy from the morphine, but it was so close to the forefront of his mind that a little morphine wouldn't be any trouble. He extracted the memory almost instantly, not wanting to need to think about it's complexities.

* * *

Sarutobi Hiruzen stepped out into the battlefield, child crooked under one arm. The boy was cooing softly, thanks to the older man's extensive training with little children. As they came closer to the epicenter of the battle, Hiruzen became more and more saddened to see the dozens of bodies littering the earth, their only purpose to distract the great beast long enough for a single child to be born and take up the burden of containing it. Hiruzen had seen the seal Minato planned to use, and it both shocked and disgusted the man. He was willing to turn his own son into a... Jinchuuriki. Hiruzen would have none of it, knowing a seal that would seal the fox just as effectively with the Death God's help, but would forever lock it away in the child, never allowing it to surface. The beast would have escaped with the death of the boy, or even emotional stress, under Minato's eight-trigram seal. Hiruzen would use ten.

The Kyuubi turned to face it's final adversary of it's long life, a wrinkled, aging man, with a child under his arm. A tiny part of his mind, which still contained the self-respect of the Juubi, was laughing uncontrollably, but his summoner, his controller, brought him to attack the man as quickly as he saw the seals flash out from his hands.

The beast had spotted him, and too soon at that. There probably wouldn't be any time to finish the ancient rite to summon the Shinigami, but he had to try. He wasn't the God of Shinobi for nothing. Under his arm, the small child began going through changes. His cries became more urging, more animal. Hiruzen didn't hear, not having the acute hearing of a father that could catch that same wail even over the beast's roars.

As he finished the sealing, the Shinigami appeared, stopping the beast in it's tracks. Hiruzen made his request, and the Shinigami's daunting, tattooed arm tore the fox from it's body, the body itself disintegrating with the loss of the spirit. The god waited patiently for Hiruzen to finish the seals on the child's stomach, it had waited a long time for this soul, but now, in a wonderful twist of luck, he would be given the right to consume it himself!

* * *

The seal complete, and the fox safely contained within, Hiruzen finally realized what he had done. "This child... his... chakra... so tainted by the beast... If only I had... used the Eight-Trigram... The beast would have repaired this taint with it's regenerative powers... but... not now... I am sorry, Minato... I hope you can forgive me for the curse I've placed on your boy... Poor... li...ttle... Naru...to..."

_Thud.

* * *

_

_Beep...Beep...Beep...Beep_

"We're losing her! We're LOSING HER!" _Beep..._ "Damnit! Not now! She's losing too much blood! Is there any more B+ in storage?" _Beep..._ "We're out! The wounded coming in from the attack have used all of it up!" _Beep... ... ...

* * *

Crap I want to say: ohhhh, I feel so cruel, starting another big thing like this. The ending for the first chapter wasn't very kind, either... I did this because I simply couldn't hold this one in any longer, it was causing too much mental stress on me. First chapter's rather short, but most prologues are. Oh well, I can deal with it, let's see if anyone else can!_


	2. Father's Love

Twisted Rage: A Father's Love

When the Kyuubi is sealed within Naruto, it is sealed permanently. Naruto will never gain the Kyuubi's powers, but what other tainted powers has this change unleashed? AU, what a surprise. Naruto-centric.

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.

* * *

Previously...

_Beep...Beep...Beep...Beep_

"We're losing her! We're LOSING HER!"_ Beep..._ "Damnit! Not now! She's losing too much blood! Is there any more B+ in storage?" _Beep..._ "We're out! The wounded coming in from the attack have used all of it up!" _Beep... ... ..._

* * *

Minato struggled to keep himself awake as the morphine passed through his system. It didn't take long for his addled brain to realize what had happened. Hiruzen didn't like the idea that Minato presented one bit, and he took matters into his own hands. The Yamanaka's invasion of his mind kept him hovering over unconsciousness, and he was just lucid enough about twenty minutes later to notice the panicked nurse leaving Kushina's delivery room.

"Yondaime-sama! Why aren't you sealing the beast?! Where is Sandaime-sama?" Minato mumbled out his answer inaudibly, then, a bit more clearly, asked a question. "How ish Kushina?" The woman frowned, a little unsure of how to continue. "She's... she's lost a lot of blood, and we don't have any left to transfuse into her to keep her heart beating... She... she's going to die, Hokage-sama."

Naruto remained in the battlefield, newborn and crying, trying to find his mother, anyone. "I hear something over there!" "Hokage-sama went that way! Perhaps the child he was carrying is there, as well!" The little demon container wailed louder still, unaware of any help coming his way. The taint to the child's chakra was fading away, hiding itself deep in the recesses of his tiny coils, away from even the most well-trained eye.

"Here he is! Hokage-sama is here, and so is the child!" A jounin of small stature leapt into the clearing, immediately checking for the Hokage's pulse. "Dead, damn!" A few other jounin made their way into the clearing where the battle ended, looking around for others. His only visible eye switched focus, there was a small, crying child next to him, wailing loudly. It was obvious from the child's appearance that it was born within a day of now. The jounin knew of only one person who could be having a child at the time "Sensei's..."

* * *

"Yondaime-sama?!" Minato staggered closer to the nurse, a large tear in his sleeve where he had ripped it apart. "I... I said... take some of mine..." The man collapsed immediately afterwards, the nurse barely being able to hold his frame up. She turned to the door, dragging as quickly as she could.

"Someone get a table ready! Yondaime-sama's been drugged!"_ ...beep... ..._ "What?!" "Table's ready!" _...beep... ... ..._ "On the count of 3! One... two... THREE!" Thump. Quick, we need the blood type test done on Yondaime-sama!" "No need, I remember his personally, it's B-!"_ ...beep... ... ..._ "B-? That's compatible with Kushina-san! Get an IV ready!" "Didn't you say he was drugged? Should we be-" _...beep... ... .._. "Shut up and get the IV ready, he was conscious only a moment ago, the drugs are probably almost out of his system by now!" _...beep... ... eeeeeeeeeeeee...

* * *

_

Kakashi frowned, a little confused at the turn of events. Not that anyone could see it, his mask was fairly useful in that regard. _Sensei said he would be doing the sealing... How did Hiruzen-sama manage to pry the secrets of Shiki Fuujin from Sensei that easily, and quickly for that matter..._ "We can't save Sandaime-sama. He's performed a rite to seal the monster away." An unassuming jounin stepped up. "Where did he seal it?" Kakashi looked at the child's stomach, seeing the ten-pointed seal with a swirl in the center. He couldn't say that it was sealed in the child, there wasn't anyone strong or commanding enough to stop the others present. _If the Sandaime had been there while sensei sealed it like planned... This wouldn't be happening to me right now... _"He's sealed it... In another realm, with the Shinigami." In a deft movement, Kakashi slipped some of the Hokage's tattered cloth over the child's body, hiding the intricate sealing there. "He needed a newborn to make the rite possible, this poor little boy is an innocent here. I'll take him back to the hospital so he can be with his parents." _I did the right thing, I know I did.

* * *

_

_...eeeeeeeeeeeeeeee..._ "Damn, I... I don't think we can save her..." The head doctor nearly slapped the surgeon right then. "Stop that talk and help! We need paddles, NOW!" A nurse was already on the job, charging the device even before he asked. "Charging..."_ ...eeeeeeeeeee..._ "Clear!" _Buh... beep... beep... eeeeeeeeeeeee..._ Sweat could be seen on everyone's foreheads, this would be close, too close. "Charging..." "CLEAR!" _Buh... ... beep... beep... beep... _"We did it! We got her back!" A certain blond faded back into consciousness, his vision blurry. "No time to celebrate now, we need to get her stable." Minato's head tilted to face his lover, and as the loss of blood started to pull him back under again, he smiled. _Thank you... Kami..._

* * *

Minato woke to the sound of birds ouside a window, and opened his blurry eyes to a bombardment of bright lights. "Uhhnnn..." "Looks like you're back... Sensei." As the Yellow Flash's eyes adjusted to the sudden change in brightness, he opened his dry throat to talk. "Don't talk just yet, Sensei. You've been out for almost two days. Here, some ice will help. "Mmmphmm" _Thanks, Kakashi_. As the cool ice chips melted on his tongue, Minato gingerly propped himself up a little on the bed, feeling a little light-headed as he did so. "Don't stress yourself too much, yet. You gave up a lot of blood."

Minato's eyes finally cleared, allowing him to see his student clearly, and making his headache pound him with equal clarity. "Kush...ina..." The man choked a little, making a few dry coughs, but he refused to stop. "Naru...to..." Kakashi laid a hand on the blond. "Don't worry, they're fine. They're both fine."

* * *

Kushina was glowing with happiness. After she woke up about a day after the delivery, Kakashi had strolled in, gingerly handing her little baby boy over to her, at long last. "Here." And he was gone. At first, she was almost giddy with anticipation for her little Naruto to see his father._ Wait... He said... he said he was going to do that awful jutsu... My little baby is..._ She cried silently for most of the night, until she fell asleep. When she was woken up, a nurse was standing over her, holding her little baby with trained care. "Ah, Kushina-san! You're awake! I've arranged a wheelchair for you." Perplexed, Kushina wondered why she would need one. "I couldn't bear to think that your little baby boy wouldn't get to see his daddy, so I'm going to take you over to see him." Realizing what it meant, Kushina almost lashed out at the ignorant nurse. She resigned herself to crying, instead. "How dare you say something like that! My Minato gave up his life to save the village, and you want his son to see the body in the _morgue?!_" The nurse stepped back, shocked. "No one told you? Minato never performed the sealing. It seems that Sandaime-sama was the one who defeated the Kyuubi."

The mother teared up, even more than before, but her crying wasn't in sorrow anymore, it was joy. A smile spread across her reddened face, and she happily complied.

* * *

Kakashi was just leaving as the nurse nearly bumped into him. "Careful, young man! This is a hospital!" Minato turned his head slowly, eyeing the door with giddy hope. In burst Kushina, vibrant and life-like as always, not the pale ghost he foggily remembered from the delivery. And in her arms was Naruto, a few strands of bright hair poking out from under his covering. "Kushina... you're okay..." The nurse beamed down at the couple, giggling as she left the room. "Buzz the desk if you need anything, you two."

Carefully wheeling herself over, Kushina locked eyes only a few feet away from her lover. A nearly romantic air formed between the two, before Kushina spoke. "Minatooo, how'd you get yourself put in the hospital? I bet that old codger Hiruzen gave you quite the run for your money when he forced you to let him do the sealing instead!" The blond sighed, almost expecting as much. Kushina was about as romantic as Kakashi, sometimes. "Kushina... you almost died. Kakashi said if you had needed so much as a drop more, I'd be the one that died instead of you." She quieted down quick after that, and neither of the new parents spoke for a while after that.

"Do... do you want to hold him?" Minato smiled, his bright eyes sending flutters into Kushina's head like they always did. "Of course... I do... But not right now... Damn you and your fast recovery Kushina... You were as bad off as I... was, and you're already... halfway back to your feet..." The red-head giggled, cooing softly at the small child in her arms. How about I just hold him up close so you can get a good look at yourself in the mirror, darling?" "That would be... fine..."

* * *

For a moment, Minato though he really was looking in a mirror. The blond hair could already be seen growing out in thin, isolated wisps, and those blue eyes were unmistakable. The baby fat around his little cheeks even resembled how it formed up around his own from his old gennin photos. If he didn't catch a glimpse of Kushina in the glint of Naruto's eyes, he would have thought that the boy was his own clone. "Ha... he looks so much... like me. Bet he's gonna act... like you... sweetheart."

* * *

Crap I want to say:  
Don't worry, I've gotta get all this mushy mush out of the way first before things start to get more serious. Yay for everybody living! except for hiruzen... who is actually really cool... sigh... I hated it when he died.


	3. Mother's Love

Twisted Rage: A Mother's Love

When the Kyuubi is sealed within Naruto, it is sealed permanently. Naruto will never gain the Kyuubi's powers, but what other tainted powers has this change unleashed?

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.

* * *

_Previously..._

For a moment, Minato though he really was looking in a mirror. The blond hair could already be seen growing out in thin, isolated wisps, and those blue eyes were unmistakable. The baby fat around his little cheeks even resembled how it formed up around his own from his old gennin photos. If he didn't catch a glimpse of Kushina in the glint of Naruto's eyes, he would have thought that the boy was his own clone. "Ha... he looks so much... like me. Bet he's gonna act... like you... sweetheart."

* * *

"Mommy! Mommy! I wanna go to the academy, Mommy!" The six-year-old blond ran circles around his mother, and if not for her shinobi training, she would have lost balance, and spilled the entire plate on the little boy's head. She already had once, but... _"The little monster got me by surprise! DON'T LAUGH AT ME, MINATO!"_ That was a fond memory, giving Minato that big discolored bruise that lasted a whole week. When she had put the big plate of vegetables down on the dining table, she plucked the little boy up by the collar, and after swinging him into the air a little, settled him in her arms. "Oh really, Naruto? I thought you wanted to wait because you didn't want to do homework yet."

Squirming around, Naruto managed to get himself free of his mother, and he looked up at her with a determined look. "Sasuke's joining the academy, too! And so is Sakura-chan! I don't wanna be left behind while they do cool ninja stuff!" Kushina giggled and squatted down to face her tiny son. "Ohhh! I see, Naruto... You've got a crush on Sakura-chan and you want to look cool for her, is that it?" The small blond got red in the face and stomped his foot. "Nuh-uh! Sakura-chan's nice to me an' stuff! I don't love her or stuff like that! Besides, Daddy said women are weird and confusing... and that... _I wasn't supposed to tell mommy..._" The child's eyes widened, and he started to run away as quickly as he could.

Kushina, left in the dining room, felt her fist close up over her dress. He's getting another bruise later tonight, and be singing soprano for the rest of his life. "Honey, what are you doing on the floor like that?" She smiled as she un-bent herself back into a standing position. "Nothing, Minato-kuuuun!"

"Dinner-time!"

* * *

Naruto carved a clean swath through his plate, and Kushina wondered if she would have to bother washing the kid's dish this time, either. He had already licked it back to sparkling condition, and she shrugged, glad to have less work to do afterwards. "Daddy! I'm going to the academy!" The father looked up from his dinner, a happy shine in his eyes. "Really? Does that mean you'll finally let me teach you a few shinobi techniques?" "Yeah! Can you teach me some stuff after dinner so I can stay up late?" The little spark in the Yondaime's eyes turned into a full-face grin. "Sure! I'll teach you how to sense your chakra!" Whack! Kushina's open hand hit the table, sending a ripple through it. "Hell no, Minato! He's MINE!" Naruto watched with a combination of silent awe and fear as his two parents began to fight. "You get him all day! I want to teach him how to be a shinobi!" "No sex for a week!" "..."

Naruto held back a childish giggle, his mother used that one argument again. He had no idea why, but his father always seemed to shut up and get a frightened look on his face after she said that. He had thought about using it against one of his friends before, but he won anyway, so he didn't need it.

* * *

Minato was in trouble, she was using that one threat again. He couldn't get away from that one! The first time she had used it, he had come crawling back apologizing after two days! _This is Naruto's training, damnit! I can't back down yet!_ "I'm... I'll... Uh... I'll have you arrested! I'll have the ANBU take you into T&I for a night! I WANT THIS, KUSHINA!" His wife took on a serious look, squinting her eyes, tightening her lip, and glaring at him. "Two..."

"Three!" Both parents broke their respective glares to look at their son. He was counting on his hand. "Four! Five! Six! Seven! Eight! Nine! Ten!" Kushina was quick on the draw, clapping her hands for her little boy. "Good work, Naruto! Can you count any higher?" The little blond nodded his head, and stood on his chair, his fingers over his head, as he got a concentrated look on his face. "One... Two... Three..." Both adults smiled, holding back their laughs. Minato broke, leaning back into his chair and holding his chest as he started laughing hard. "HEY! Stop laughing at me! It's hard to count this high!" The barely held laughter from Kushina also exploded out, and soon both parents had backed away from the table, bent over and clutching their sides. Naruto pouted angrily, sitting back down with his arms folded and a sour look on his face.

* * *

Minato and Kushina had tucked their clueless son into bed, still confused as he was at the dinner table, and they both went to bed, as well. Kushina looked over to Minato as they got under the covers, and her husband smiled as he raised his hand high in the air. "Wooon... Twoooooo... Tweeeee..." They both started to snicker again, still enjoying the joke even after it got old.

* * *

"Minato..." "Yes, dear?" "You better have given up on teaching our boy, or that feel you're trying to cop is going to feel like a broken hand." "Damnit, you won't let up on that will you?"

* * *

Kushina grinned, so confident in her ability that she believed she could have every shinobi in the village dancing to the macarena within two days of an argument with Minato. She briefly wondered if every Hokage's wife was quite so lucky, but seeing Naruto throw his shuriken distracted her from wondering further. She clapped, praising her quick-learning son. "Good work, little 'Nato!" "Moooooooom, I don't like that naaame!" "When you can throw your shuriken well enough to hit ten out of ten targets, I'll stop calling you that, my sweet little 'Nato!" Naruto huffed, grabbing more kunai and shuriken to throw. _Stupid parents. Sometimes I wish they just weren't there!_ Taking a clean throwing stance, Naruto launched the rubber-tipped tools yet again. Swish! Da-da-da! "This is taking FOREVER!!! Auugh!!" His mother giggled again. "You're doing it right, you just need more practice. Hurry up, 'Nato! You don't want your father to learn that name, too!"

With newfound vigor, Naruto set himself to training.

* * *

"Hey, Sasuke-kun! Naruto says he can beat you in target practice!" A small Ino ran, panting, to an equally small Sasuke. "Oh yeah? Take me to him! I'll show him!" The raven-haired child smiled, running out to meet his childhood rival.

* * *

Crap I want to Say: *waves* more mushy mushy, and some silly! I skipped quite a bit of time, because, again, i want to have all the serious stuff in one place. Any information regarding Naruto's chakra or the sealing that came up in between his birth and his academy days will be discussed as either a flashback or as pieces of conversation later on.


	4. Ominous Fear

Twisted Rage: Ominous Fear

When the Kyuubi is sealed within Naruto, it is sealed permanently. Naruto will never gain the Kyuubi's powers, but what other tainted powers has this change unleashed?

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.

* * *

Previously...

Minato and Kushina gladly allow their son to join the academy, and his friendships are healthy and widespread. With such a picture-perfect, happy family, what could possibly go wrong?

* * *

A blond man stalked into Kushina's living room, a frown on his face. It couldn't possibly be her Minato, the man never looked that unhappy about anything. It was. "Kushina, we have to talk." _Oh no! He's cheating on me! I'll KILL HIM! And I'll KILL that harpy that he's cheating with!_ "It's about Naruto." _What! Something's wrong with his seal! Oh no, it must be worse, he's DEAD!_ She put a hand on his shoulder, trying to keep herself calm more than to comfort him. "What's the matter, Minato? Has something happened to the seal?" The man frowned a little harder. "I'm afraid... I'm afraid I haven't been completely honest with you about his medical check-ups." He slumped over in the couch, hands on his knees. "I always told you that he was completely normal, that the Kyuubi caused no ill effects. I have bad news." Kushina felt anger rise in her chest, Minato had lied to her for almost 7 years! But her concern quenched her violence for the moment. "Bad news? What could possibly be so bad that you're acting like this?"

Minato sighed, moving his hands onto his head. "There wasn't a problem until about a year ago. Every check-up was clear, I thought it was a fluke. There's some tiny anomaly with his chakra. They don't know what it is, what it does, or whether it will go away or not, but it's there." It took a moment to register, but after she figured out what he was saying, Kushina nearly slapped the man on the back of the head for scaring her like that. "Minato-baka! You're freaking out over a little screw-up? Almost all of the good shinobi in the world have something off about their chakra! You couldn't use your famous Hiraishin without that little bubble you keep complaining about and I couldn't possibly use as many ninjutsu with as much potency as I do without my extra tight coils." Her look turned to a wide grin. "So come on, tell me, what type is it?"

Minato sighed, maybe he was being a little worrisome. But it was just so frightening to think about... "I guess... It's not too bad, they aren't entirely sure, but it seems to be a second type of chakra, it doesn't match up with the rest of it." Kushina gleamed and got even more ecstatic. "Really? Minato, that means he's got another type of chakra! He can double specialize! He might even be able to use an advanced element! Ohhh, I wonder what it is! Your wind and my water would be ice! Minato, that's amazing! Hyoton is an extinct bloodline in Kiri, and our little boy might be able to use that element!" Minato smiled, leaning back a little and easing up. _Kushina... Always so hopeful, so cheerful... Maybe she's right, most chakra anomalies are small, at best, and even fewer of them are detrimental. I think there's only one child with a damaging anomaly in Naruto's entire generation. That poor Lee child, I think. _"I guess you're right, I was just being a paranoid parent, Kushina-chan."

* * *

"Itachi-san, I called you here for an important reason. I know you give your loyalty to me above all others, and I need your help with this issue." "Anything, Hokage-sama." "I need you to tell your father... at your next clan meeting, that I know about the plan. Don't let them know you're on my side. Tell him that I told you I will gladly negotiate with him over his clan's troubles." "As you wish, Hokage-sama."

* * *

"Itachi." "..." "Kill them all." "..."

* * *

Itachi flowed into the clan's meeting chamber, which was just about to begin. Fugaku scowled at his son, the boy was becoming annoying and troublesome. They were trying to iron out the final details of the revolt, and he was becoming distant and especially odd. "You're late." "My apologies, Tou-san. The Hokage held me over to speak with me." "Does he still trust you like you said?" "Yes, and he has informed me that he knows of the coup."

Any silent murmuring in the room room became silent, the elders and clan head looking at Itachi with shock. "I said, he knows of the plans." "He told you this himself? That is rather unbelievable." "He wishes to open negotiations with the clan to address our grievances." Smirks rose up on the faces of every elder present, and Fugaku was surprised enough to let out a chuckle. "He wants to open negotiations? Ridiculous!" One elder, an aging man with obvious strands of gray poking out from the black, stepped forward. "We have lost the element of surprise, Fugaku-sama. At least six of our major objectives were hinged on a combined surprise attack, and with the new knowledge the Hokage has, patrols around the compound are likely to be more alert, and major targets more heavily guarded." Fugaku began to frown, realization dawning on him. The elder continued, "Even if we are Uchiha, they have more than a dozen clans, and hundreds upon hundreds of shinobi, and... the Yellow Flash." Others began to murmur. The Yellow Flash was a major hurdle. Every single plan they had would be for naught if he were to join the battle. Their odds-makers determined that even if every single shinobi in the village were killed before the Flash could help them, every Uchiha at the same time would only have a 60% chance of killing him.

The elders debated for a short moment, worrying Fugaku. He wanted this coup to happen, regardless of the elder's personal preference. "Fugaku, we demand that the coup be postponed. We should probably take to a more diplomatic approach, now." The head of the Uchiha scowled, stalking out of the room. His plans were crushed. Curses flew out from under his breath. A new scheme was building in his mind. He would have his coup, one way or the other.

* * *

Naruto grinned at his friend, Sasuke. The two of them had just prepared the finishing touches to the classroom, in preparation for the arrival of their all new teacher. First, he'd be caught by an eraser in the door, then, all of his desk utensils would be glued down. There was itching powder on the erasers and the chalk, and for the grand finale, two small pins on either end of the seat. They stifled chuckles along with the rest of the class when they heard the sound of hurried footsteps in the hall.

"Sorry I'm late every- what the hell?" The eraser planted in the door hit it's mark perfectly, dropping right on Umino's head. Boys will be boys, might as well let this one go. The itching powder was just starting to seep in. Iruka slid up to the desk and tried to pick up a pencil to begin attendance. It didn't seem to budge, and after a quick inspection, the tell-tale signs of superglue could be seen on it, and on pretty much every other object on the desk, including the books.

* * *

Umino Iruka was a bit annoyed, he knew, or, he had a good idea, who was doing it. "Alright. Who's the funny guy?" The children stifled giggles, but held firm. Giving it up for something to handle after class, the chuunin grabbed some chalk and swiftly wrote out his name on the board. "Hello students, my name is U-mi-no I-ru-ka." His free hand strayed up to his head to scratch a growing itch. A few of the students lost their composure and burst into short fits. The teacher spun on a heel and tried his 'a bit serious' face. "What's so funny, kids?" Those who had laughed clammed up, but anyone who hadn't broken yet were still obviously trying not to. Iruka's hand moved to his head again, and a few more of his kids started laughing. Something's off, here... and what the hell is with this itch?

Iruka sat down in his chair, a second hand slipping up to help the first in destroying the itch that plagued him so. "YEOW!" Without missing a beat, he bounced back up to his feet, the chair launching itself into a wall behind him. His hands didn't leave his head. More of his foul students burst into laughter, some with tears. Only two weren't joining in on the hysterics just yet, and Iruka singled them out with a sharp, dangerous look. Their smirks faded. "Namikaze Naruto. Uchiha Sasuke. Hallway. Now." His hands were still stuck furiously to his head, even as he stormed out of the room.

Lucky for Iruka, a fellow chuunin had provided him with a cream to relieve the itching after a moment. Apparently, this was a regular occurrence. Alright, time to create some real terror, these two won't be able to sleep for weeks. Iruka discretely made a handseal behind his back, pretending to crack his knuckles. His favorite genjutsu. He made the most pleasant, kind smile he could, and spoke in a slow, venomously sugary tone. "Okay, you two. I've heard a lot about the pranks and antics you like to pull on your instructors, but just know, that I won't have any of it. If I so much as see a speck of dust out of place every time I enter that classroom, you'll be working the suicide course for advanced students for the day. Understaaaaand?"

For Naruto and Sasuke, they saw a cruel, evil grin, and felt the most intense sense of foreboding and fear they had ever felt. Even their parents couldn't come close to this maniac. With a shared gulp, they kept eye contact. "Y-yes, Umino-sensei."

* * *

Crap I want to say: my apologies for being like, a day or two late. just getting into the swing of the opening of my spring semester. i still love this story like a baby, it just slipped my mind with all the cleaning up and work i have to put together!

* * *

Crap I feel like ranting about: Some of you, screw it, all of you, noticed that Kushina wasn't the least bit worried about Naruto's chakra. The explanation i had her give was somewhat vague, so i'll go a little deeper into it here:

A shinobi with perfectly normal chakras could be considered, oh, about as skilled as Iruka, maybe a little better. It takes a peculiar mutation or freak addition to a person's chakra coils or the way their chakra flows through their system to make them truly exceptional, though. Uniqueness is, in fact, excellence.

Minato's "bubble" is in the way his chakra flows through his body. When he does jutsu, they tend to "pop" with a little extra force than they technically should. This makes clones, genjutsu, and lots of channeled jutsu very difficult to use, but is perfect for his hiraishin. Every time he charges up a jutsu, the chakra gets stuck at a particular point on his coils, and explodes outward, adding to the force, or the teleportation aspect of hiraishin, without needing any extra effort on his part.

Kushina's "tight coils" are a mutation, fitting twice as many coils of chakra in her body and using the same amount of space, so there's twice as much space for chakra to be stored up inside of it. This makes her a natural with ninjutsu and clones, which often consume great quantities of chakra. Combined with her own talent as a kunoichi, her control cuts the amount of chakra she uses, giving her the best of both gender's in terms of chakra use.

I've used these two as examples, but i like to speculate that just about every bloodline, secret clan, or skilled shinobi in every village has some kind of genetic fluke in their chakra that lets them be as skilled as they are. For a later hint, i'll give my definition of "second chakras":

Second Chakras: A shinobi term used to indicate the presence of chakra that does not fit the signature of the bearer's own natural chakra. Second Chakras usually double a shinobi's chakra supply, as well as their rate of healing and chakra recovery. Common examples include advanced element users, jinchuuriki, and double specialists(natural talent in ninjutsu and genjutsu at the same time). Progressive specialists believe that second chakras can also manifest as split personalities, schizophrenia, and bipolarism. The most famous living example is the Mizukage, who could very likely have up to 4 different chakras in her system.


	5. Brief Repose

Twisted Rage: Brief Repose

When the Kyuubi is sealed within Naruto, it is sealed permanently. Naruto will never gain the Kyuubi's powers, but what other tainted powers has this change unleashed?

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.

* * *

This chapter was my personal hell. I had no idea how to bring about the attempted coup, even though i had it entirely planned out. The sheer effort involved in trying to make the damn thing feel good was so epic that i quit trying for a while, only to come back after the most recent manga kind of made it more AU than i had hoped. meh, here goes.

P.S. oh boo it's a rapid skip-shot through time. I'll separate large jumps accordingly, but i'd prefer not to specify exactly when each moment is. I think it feels a little more interesting that way.

* * *

The Uchiha Revolution

Fugaku, in a rage at being cast down by his own council, called an emergency meeting the night of the called-off revolution. The room was quietly abuzz with rumors about the clan head's dwindling sanity in the face of overwhelming odds against the clan. Fugaku, as skillful as the head of any clan, was too silent for them to notice when it happened.

In moments, the head of the Uchiha had taken up his own weapons to murder, in cold blood, his childhood friends, his team mates, and his family. He had personally disposed of the entire Uchiha council, and the lights of the council chamber were out. The verdict was in.

What would come to be known as the War of the Flash Kami began and ended early the next morning.

"MOVE! If we capture the boy, the Hokage will surrender the battle!"

Several sets of footsteps could be heard passing down the hall, and little Naruto's protectors readied themselves for the incoming force.

An Inuzuka whispered quietly to her team mate, "We count six, Anko."

Ears open, Naruto learned a few new choice words from the snake woman's mouth.

"That's too many! We'll have to hold off until our reinforcements show up."

The doors burst open, kunai flying through along with several pinpointed katon jutsu.

"Capture the boy alive! Everyone else is kill-on-sight!"

As Anko and the Inuzuka held off against the attack, the canine familiar made a shrill bark. Anko and the Inuzuka's eyes went wide with realization. They were only fighting five men. A bright flash filled the room, and not a moment later, the Uchiha were unconscious. The two guardians spun to see a shock of blond disappearing to leave a proud, but afraid, child before them. A specially-made kunai was left in his hand, and the women defenders breathed a sigh of relief.

* * *

Meanwhile...

Sasuke cried silently in the safety of the clan's secret chambers. He had experienced a great deal of shock and sadness today. First, his family charged into the village, attacking the ANBU. He had always been taught that the ANBU protected everyone, so to see his family in the act of killing them was heartbreaking. To follow it up, he had overheard his father arguing with Itachi. The argument was intense, and it ending with a blunt noise, like skin and bone striking together. He looked in on the two, afraid, seeing his brother standing over the unconscious clan head.

Itachi stared with unreadable emotions. "...Sasuke..."

* * *

Aftermath

The aftermath of the battle was surprisingly bloodless, and it only served to drastically further the Yellow Flash's reputation as a god on the field of battle. Only five Uchiha died in the battle, and two ANBU, and all seven were killed by Itachi as he escaped the village in shame that he could not prevent the events of the morning from occuring. The clan's reputation was destroyed as a result of the failed coup, and hatred was shown to them in excess. Civilians only felt safe doing so because of a seal placed on every Uchiha who participated in the attack, leaving only one functioning member of the clan, Uchiha Sasuke.

Sasuke suffered the most from the events afterwards. By the village at large, he was called a traitor to the will of fire, and by his clan, he was compared to his brother, a traitor to his family. Fortunately, he still had a friend in Naruto, even as the rest of the village shunned him. He never looked happier in public than after the coup.

* * *

The Last Day of the Uchiha

Sasuke sat apart from a long line of his family members. Only he and a few newborns that he was sheltering for the trial were allowed to sit in the front row of the chamber. His father sat in front of the rest of them, a blank-faced Namikaze Minato reciting a long, long list of crimes before an audience of the entire village beside him. When he reached the end of the list, he looked over at the clan head beside him, who stood stoic and proud, even to the end. "Uchiha Fugaku, for these crimes committed against Konohagakure and the citizens and shinobi belonging to it, you are sentenced to death by fire, and all participants of the coup sentenced to permanent chakra sealing and compound arrest for the rest of their lives... Do you have anything to say?

As the man opened his mouth, a voice burst up from the front row. "I have something to say."

Fugaku, pleased that his son would defend him now in his final hour, smiled. "I will surrender my last words to my son."

Minato nodded the boy up to the platform, and from there, he looked straight into his father's proud, haughty, and insane eyes. "Die a traitor's death, father."

None of the audience heard it, but the Hokage, the Clan Head, and all of the Uchiha directly behind them could, and they were stunned to silence. He spat on the tops of his father's sandals, and stepped down from the stage.

When Fugaku died, he sobbed into the flames, and they burned his tears into vapor, and consumed him. His son's hatred was still on his sandals as they burned.

* * *

New Genin: A Year of Rookies

The teams of Naruto's graduating class were prepared based on their fighting quality and ability to perform team exercises. This placed Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura on team 7. Shikamaru, Ino, and Chouji were placed together in a team, as well as Hinata, Kiba, and Shino. Team 7's sensei was none other than Hatake Kakashi, the famed Copy Ninja. Part of the reason for such a team, was Minato's following with the tradition of keeping team 7 in a kind of continuous family.

Sakura chimed in first. "Why is sensei so late?"

"I bet it's Kakashi! He's always late!" Naruto huffed and crossed his arms indigently.

Sasuke yawned as he leaned into his desk. "Naruto... Don't say stuff like that about Kakashi..."

Moments later, the culprit walked into the room, smiling under his mask.

Naruto groaned out loud, "Well speak of the lazy devil."

"Sorry kids, there was this old lady with some groceries and..."

The trio spoke out in chorus. "Can it!"

* * *

Tests

"We can't... beat him... like this..." Sasuke was ragged, breathing heavy. He did the most work.

Sakura nodded. "I know, he's just too good!"

Sasuke continued, seeming not to notice she had spoke. "All of the... strategies we try... are useless!"

Sakura relaxed into an indian sit. "Yeah."

Naruto was silent, eyes distant in thought. He had done plenty of work, just like Sasuke, but his work was done through more indirect means. Sakura noticed first, seeing as she was the least winded. "Naruto, you seemed preoccupied in that last try, what's wrong?"

Eyes snapping to the party, he felt a little embarrassed. "Well I've got this technique I learned in secret, and I dunno if I should use it..."

Sasuke stopped panting. "What is it?"

_Wonder where the kids are..._ Kakashi had already put away his book. T_hey teamed up rather quickly, about as long as it took my team to figure it out._ Now, he was just screwing around to pass the time. He was going to pass them... eventually. A rustling in the bushes broke Kakashi's musing. "Oh, I was wondering when you'd try again."

Sasuke stepped from the bushes, alone. Had Kakashi not seen the other two sneak around behind him, he might have actually wondered what they were planning. It only took a split second, but he spun, slapping the pair away when he felt them get close enough. He only caught sight of them out of the corner of his eye, but for a moment, he could have sworn he saw two of Naruto. Now was not the time for second-guessing, however, so he prepared for the superior taijutsu of the Uchiha child from the front. As he turned to face the boy, an unexpected sound reached his ears. The distinct sound of shadow clones breaking up directly where he had slapped back the two attackers from behind.

_Crap, he can make THOSE?_

The fight after that was considerably more challenging. Kakashi was trying not to kill the kids, but the unnatural number of shadow clones he was up against made it difficult not to use higher level jutsu. Minato had provided Kakashi with considerably more detailed reports of Naruto than the others, and this proved that the father wasn't exaggerating in the slightest. Kakashi had a solid count of about ten shadow clones so far, and the boy was only just starting to break a real sweat.

A close eye on the shadows on the ground told Kakashi that he still had about ten minutes to go, and the pressure the kids were putting down was making him wonder if he shouldn't use his sharingan. He decided against it, since he wasn't aiming to kill them, besides, Minato would be the one killing Naruto after he found out his son had snuck some training out of the forbidden scrolls in his closet. _Okay, time to give them the bells. They might actually cause me some serious harm if I let them keep going this way._

Returning Home - Naruto

Kushina looked around, seeing nothing out of the ordinary. Her housework was done, the home was quiet, empty, and she had a couch all to herself. "Don't tell the bed about this, darling." She eased herself down, closing her eyes for a nap.

Her husband exploded from another room. "Naruto! I'm going to kill you for this! I told you not to touch that scroll a hundred times!"

_Great, what could he have done now?_

Returning Home - Sasuke

At the same time, another boy entered his own home in silence. His mother gave him a tired smile before going back to her cooking. His father was nowhere in sight. "Dinner's ready, Sasuke."

He put his kunai pouch away and washed his hands before going to the table. It was his favorite again, tonight. He sat down and began to eat. "Sasuke, did you pass your test, today?"

He nodded. "Did you get any of your friends on your team?"

He nodded again, still silent. He never spoke to family anymore, and no matter how long he did it, it still unnerved Mikoto. _He must feel so betrayed... We deserve it._ "I'm sorry, Sasuke."

He shook his head and got up from the table, leaving whatever was left of dinner. Mikoto cleaned up with a heavy heart after finishing as much as she could. _This house is too small for him, as long as I'm here, too._

Returning Home - Sakura

"Mom! Dad! I'm home!"

A bright and proud Sakura practically skipped through the door, bringing out a man with silvery hair. "Ah! There's my darling girl! How was your test, today? Did you do alright, even though we made you eat?"

Sakura pouted, crossing her arms. "Yes, daddy. You were right, 'there isn't anything you can do that will make you glad you skipped breakfast'."

The white-haired man gave a grin that denied his age. "Good! So, tell me again, who was on your team? I believe I had to go before I could hear that."

Sakura smiled proudly, and counted off the two team mates on her fingers. "First is Namikaze Naruto-kun, and also Uchiha Sasuke-kun!" She squealed. "I can't decide which one I like more, daddy! I'm so lucky that I get the two most handsome, and most cool boys on my team! Ino was so jealous, too!"

Her father nodded with a big smile on his face. _Uh oh, this may take a while._ "And Natsumi was just..."

* * *

Well now, that was alright. Sorry about the lack of me being around for those of you who do like my stories, it relieves so much stress to write these things, God this chapter sucked to make though...

And now, for stuff that's rather important to understand so you don't get confused:

Naruto still has shadow clones: Yes, he does, it's too much mental trouble to think up an entirely new style for him. Fortunately, so long as he remains the host of Kyuubi, there's always an excuse for him to have them!

Reason: The seal on his body uses his own chakra to sustain it. In this way, Naruto is similar to Lee, since Naruto's seal acts like Lee's body weights in terms of training. body weights improve your gains from physical training, naruto's seal improves his gains in chakra training. Also, because Naruto needs a bigger amount of chakra to live, his body adapts to have more. Because his supply of chakra is constantly being eaten at, his natural rate of regeneration is improved. Personally, this is how i've always thought his "kyuubi advantages" are really just side-effects of having such a seal on his body for so long. Besides, his clan is virtually famous for having very long lives, a signature of strong chakra.

P.S. - And now that Kishimoto totally pwnt all beliefs about the Kyuubi attack, i have one tiny advantage. He let Kushina live through the damage of having Kyuubi torn out :D I'll be modifying the chunks of the first few chapters that fall out of line with that, since i'm completely insane and even though I'm making an AU, i can't stand the idea of having the PREMISE of the story be AU, too. Go figure.


	6. Unholy Rage

Twisted Rage: Unholy Rage

When the Kyuubi is sealed within Naruto, it is sealed permanently. Naruto will never gain the Kyuubi's powers, but what other tainted powers has this change unleashed?

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.

* * *

Here it is, the moment you've all been waiting for, "it's" unveiling.

* * *

"Come on dad! I think we should be allowed to do one C-rank mission! How am I supposed to take your job if I don't do cool missions? Pretty please?"

The older blonde shook his head. "No."

Naruto begged further. "PLEEEAAAASE? It's Kakashi-sensei! We'll be fine with him around!"

Minato sighed, "That's not the point, Naruto, you have to learn that these jobs are important parts of shinobi life before we send you on real missions."

Naruto groaned. "We'll do a hundred of these stupid D rank missions when we get back, dad! Just this one?"

Against his better judgement, and a silently nagging gut feeling, Minato caved. "Fine, there's an escort mission to Wave available right about now..."

Later...

_Tazuna's an idiot._ All three gennin thought in unison. They had been walking for almost twenty minutes, and he still wouldn't shut his giant trap about how young the team was. Unfortunately for his aging nerves, he was about to discover just how good they were despite their size.

As the group passed the puddle in the road, the Demon Brothers almost lost their hold on their hiding technique. The biggest bounty in history had just walked past them. Namikaze Naruto, son of the infamous Yellow Flash. Iwa alone had a fortune large enough to feed a nation for a year on his head. This was their chance of a lifetime to leave Zabuza's wing and live in the lap of luxury for the rest of their lives.

Kakashi was on incredibly high alert. He knew about Naruto's bounty, the BINGO book was an international criminal's guide to bounties, and he had pocketed one, as well. The instant he saw the puddle, he had duplicated a water clone to replace him as he hid in the trees, hand at his holster. He'd let the kids toy around a little bit, and take over when things got out of hand. Then he'd send them back to the village and have the guard tripled, no, quadrupled, on the Hokage's home.

The battle started in an instant, Kakashi's clone was dispersed in a false, red color, and who he now recognized as the Demon Brothers were closing in on Naruto specifically. He'd have to play it off for Tazuna to see if he really was the first target, later. The boys started fighting right away, Sasuke disabled the pair while their focus was off of him, pinning their chain to a tree, and Naruto cleaned up the mess with two solid chops to their necks. Kakashi gave them a second to sweat it out before showing up. "Ohiyo, kids! I was just off in the forest doing some business, what did you do while I was away?"

This was terrible, after a well-placed lie that the Demon Brothers were obviously aiming at him, no matter how much it looked like they were after Naruto, Tazuna confessed to Gatou being directly opposed to the bridge he was building. Gatou was a shipping merchant, and a rich one at that. He could afford to purchase higher level shinobi than those that attacked them here, possibly A-rank missing-nin if he dug deep enough. He'd have to send word to Minato to bring another team, since Naruto was being too stubborn to force them to swap out to a more experienced squad. Discreetly, while they waited for a boat to arrive, the jounin tied the message to a special kunai that all Jounin of his rank received. He threw it, and within the second, it was enveloped in a yellow burst, before disappearing into the air. _Minato's going to kill me for caving in to the kid on this one._

_Just great, absolutely fuckin' wonderful. Momochi Zabuza, Demon of the Hidden Mist, A-Rank criminal with masterful silent killing skills. Where the hell is our backup team?_ Things turned from bad to worse as the Nuke-nin targeted his students before him. In the mist, it was almost impossible to predict where he would go, even with his sharingan revealed. For a moment, Sasuke looked like he would panic, but he held together well. Another clone was dispersed in the short time between his attack and Zabuza's. He was at a disadvantage, Zabuza had gone one clone further than him. A quick headbutt with the back of his head put Zabuza in a daze just long enough to pull the kunai from his throat, when a sound reached his ears. He stepped on water, and Zabuza was on him again, handseals flaring. "You shouldn't have gone onto the water, Copy-nin, that's my territory."

Before he could react, a bubble of water sprouted up around him, trapping him in what he analyzed to be a form of suffocation. His lung training would help him last about six minutes, just long enough for... "Naruto! Take Tazuna and the team out of here! I'll keep him occupied until-"

"Too late, Kakashi!" A water clone sprouted up, and it took up a position between the kids and Kakashi.

The silver-haired jounin started to panic, his air supply shrinking even faster than before. "RUN!"

Sasuke couldn't believe it, Naruto was challenging an A ranked missing-nin like a complete fool. Shadow clones popped left and right as they made reckless charges at the clone. Naruto had gone through at least twenty clones, and it was definitely starting to look like he was nearing the end of his rope. It laughed afterwards, making a smart comment about quality over quantity, when Naruto had suddenly thrown Sasuke his backpack. "You know what to do, Sasuke!"

Taking out the windmill shuriken, Sasuke narrowed his eyes towards the Zabuza in the back, now that the mist had partially faded away. A fast, pointed toss sent the weapon flying past the clone towards the original. Zabuza caught it with ease, but was unprepared for the extra hidden in the shadow. Jumping to evade it, he noticed Sasuke make a devilish smirk. "That trick won't work on me, kid."

His ears picked up another sound, behind him, where the shuriken had passed by. It was a failing henge, meaning that he was about to be in a lot more trouble than he had thought.

Kakashi watched in awe as his students flawlessly performed the maneuver that saved his life. Zabuza frantically pulled his hand from the prison, releasing it instantly and allowing the sharingan user to catch his breath. Zabuza became enraged, striking out at Naruto with the stolen shuriken, so Kakashi went to block it. _Perfect, I got his attention on my eye! This battle is finished. _What happened next looked like something out of a comical theatre event. Zabuza and Kakashi acted in perfect harmony, down to the tensing of every muscle. "What kind of trick is this? You don't think you can beat my by copying my every move, do you?"

He regretted his words seconds later. Struck by a duplicated version of his own jutsu, he gave the hand signal to pull out for his hidden ally. He vaguely remembered Kakashi mutter something about his eye seeing the future before a sharp pain put his lights out.

Naruto blurted it out first. "Who the hell did that?"

With a grand entrance, a masked hunter raised the fallen Zabuza on his shoulders. "Thank you for distracting him, he was a difficult target to track for this much time. I will take my leave here."

_She's his accomplice! Damn, but my chakras are nearly gone... I can't fight in this condition._ As the trickster escaped the area, Kakashi grinned under his mask as he made his way back to the team, just before he collapsed.

He woke up in a nice, warm fuuton, with some water and soup nearby. _Guess we made it to the town okay. I've got to train those kids before Zabuza gets back into the fray. That accomplice of his felt dangerously powerful._ The silver-haired man's musing was broken by the loud, happy voice of Naruto. "Hey guys! He's awake!"

A multitude of footsteps gave Kakashi the impression that the backup team had arrived, but his hopes were dashed when the builder, a woman, and a child walked in instead. "Why do you look so glum, tough guy? We beat the big one."

Kakashi didn't feel like frightening them any more than he had to, so he exchanged some shallow lies to get them to leave. Sasuke spoke up first, a rarity. "Kakashi-sensei, are you alright? Will we fight any more battles like that before you've had a chance to recover?"

The older man winced. "I was hoping to avoid that topic, Sasuke-kun. Yes. We will almost definitely fight another battle like that one. I'm not too sure Zabuza is dead."

* * *

Sasuke fought tooth and nail for every inch of tree he climbed. Sakura had already passed him by, and Naruto was picking up the pace, and starting to pass him a little bit. For a moment, he regretted refusing his mother's help in chakra control as a child. But, on the next try, his focus seemed to double up on him, and he reached the top in one lucky go. He tried again, just to be sure. He had done it.

"Ha! I win, Naruto! Still the best at every competition we've done!" Sasuke smirked from up in the treetops.

"Just you wait, Sasuke! When I figure out how to use my dad's kunai, I'll never lose to you again!"

* * *

Kakashi looked quizzically at his student, alone. "Sasuke, where's Naruto?"

The boy shrugged and sucked down a glass of water. "He said he wanted to stay in the training area for a little while."

"WHAT?" Kakashi was flying to his crutches faster than the words even left his mouth.

* * *

_I can't believe that little squirt is making me watch over him while he takes a nap. Wait, someone's coming!_ Kakashi would be incapable of fighting anyone but a bandit in his condition, but it was the least he could do to wake Naruto and get him to escape. When he saw a very, very effeminate boy, he felt a little safer, and retreated back into the deeper surroundings. The boy moved to touch him, and Kakashi got on edge. Then he spoke. "You'll catch a cold sleeping in a place like this."

Kakashi was getting rather bored with all this. All Naruto would do is point out a plant, and the boy would shoot it down as the wrong one. They conversed, small-talk mostly, but it started to lean towards his occupation. "Why are you training?"

Naruto grinned. "So I can become stronger!"

The girl, _Wait, boy. Remember, looks like a girl, is a boy,_ smiled as Naruto spoke. "Right now, I need to prove something to someone."

The boy seemed to want to press a little further there. "Who?"

Naruto plopped himself onto the ground, yawning and stretching. "There's this kid in the village, you might know him. His name's Inari, and he doesn't believe in heroes anymore!"

The boy cocked his head, confused. "Shinobi are heroes?"

If Kakashi could strangle Naruto in his condition, he would have. "Yeah, totally! My dad's a hero, he's the Fourth Hokage! The Flash Kami!"

The boy seemed confused. _Backwoods little yokel kid. How can't he know yet?_ "The Flash Kami? I thought it was 'Yellow Flash'."

Naruto retorted instantly. "Nah, nah. Yellow Flash used to be his nickname, before he single-handedly put down an insurrection by the entire Uchiha Clan to take over Konohagakure!"

The boy nearly let his jaw smack into the grass below them. _NARUTO! THAT INFORMATION IS A VILLAGE SECRET, DUMBASS!_ "He... he what?"

* * *

After Naruto had left the vicinity of the girl-boy, Kakashi whacked the back of the boy's head with his crutch. "Kuso, idiot! You don't go around telling village secrets to random commoners!"

Naruto rubbed his head and backed away. Even without chakra to aid him, Kakashi's presence was enough to make him nearly wet himself at the moment. "You were watching me sensei?"

Finding strength from sources unknown, Kakashi hoisted the crutch above his head and pounded the boy repeatedly. "Do. you. know. how. much. your. dad's. . would. pay. to. see. you. dead?"

Naruto, defending himself unsuccessfully, groaned back. "Stop helping them, then! Owowowowowwww!"

The pair eventually made it back to the builder's house, and neither Naruto nor Kakashi could seem to explain why the blonde's face was purple. How odd.

* * *

Kakashi's strength was returning, he could feel it. Even now, he sensed their back-up flying in at a very good pace. _All chuunin-level, at the very least. But only 3? Does sensei not think that Gatou needs a whole team on him?_ The team was happily eating breakfast, Naruto's wounds nearly healed from yesterday's protocol lesson. A nearly silent patter of feet launched up to the door. _Finally, they're here!_ A booming voice could be heard outside. "I HEARD THAT MY ETERNAL RIVAL, KAKASHI, WAS IN NEED OF AID! IN FACT, HOKAGE-SAMA HIMSELF DISPATCHED MY TEAM EXCLUSIVELY TO HANDLE IT! ETERNAL RIVAL KAKASHI, PLEASE OPEN THE DOOR!"

_FUCK, **THEY'RE** HERE! DAMN YOU SENSEI, DAMN YOU TO HELL! _After the unbelievable ruckus outside, the breakfast table became completely silent, forks halfway to wide, gaping mouths, all eyes turned towards the masked man, who, himself, sat bolted to his chair, hair straighter than usual, and stiff as a board. If one didn't know better, they'd assume that rigor mortis had set in on a now dead body.

A deep breath could be heard outside, which could only mean more loud screaming, and Tsunami flashed to the door, at speeds most shinobi would consider rather excellent for her age, and allowed the guests to enter. From there, all hell broke loose.

* * *

Kakashi knew that Gai had taken on a genin team, a year earlier too, but he did NOT know that said genin team included Gai's _EVIL CHILD CLONE FROM OROCHIMARU'S LAB! KILL IT! KILL IT WITH FIRE BEFORE IT COMES AFTER ME, TOO!_ All the while, Kakashi had managed to pour all of his fear into the one, tiny instant that he first heard the man's voice. It wouldn't do for their little game if he ever caught Kakashi out-of-mood, and Kakashi's mood was very suave, not fingers-crushing-spoon-into-spork terrified.

Nonetheless, Gai was determined to laugh loudly at Kakashi's current weakness. "Eternal rival Kakashi! How-"

Tsunami's voice echoed from another room. "QUIET, YOU FREAK!"

Gai continued, effectively quieted down. "How could you have managed to suffer from chakra exhaustion on your first C-rank mission? From your emergency summons, we were only called out to protect Naruto-kun, not you, too."

A tick had developed in Kakashi's sharingan eye several years back, when he first discovered Maito Gai, fortunately, Gai never saw it, because Kakashi never, EVER revealed his sharingan in Gai's non-combat company. It was flaring up right about now. "The emergency report only filed the B ranked Demon Brothers that we encountered prior to it's sending. Immediately after I sent my report, we encountered Momochi Zabuza, Demon of the Hidden Mist, and A-ranked missing-nin. I barely managed to defeat him, when he was rescued by what I can only assume is also an A-ranked accomplice, currently unknown."

Gai was silenced immediately, the big grin off his face in a split second. Now was the time for the side of Gai he liked, the serious, business side. "How should we proceed, Kakashi?"

* * *

Their plan was simple and effective. The family was a prime target, as it would force Tazuna to quit immediately in grief if they were to die or be taken hostage. However, the bridge was slightly more important. Gai's team took the bridge on the first day, and every other day, until Kakashi and his team were at peak condition, and then Team Gai took over guarding the house from potential attacks. Neji would maintain a position roughly halfway between the two, alternating between telescoping to the bridge and to the house, able to inform either team if one needed the other's assistance. On the tenth day, Kakashi was fully recovered. That was when everything went downhill.

Kakashi's team escorted Tazuna directly to the bridge after a solid morning. The man drank less with two teams around, but complained that he better not have to pay double for the extra help of three more kids. When they arrived, the bridge was covered in mist, the two or three workers that arrived before Tazuna dead, with huge, gaping holes in their backs. Kakashi's eye narrowed. "Zabuza is here. Kids, defense formation A. We have to secure the bridge for it to be completed, or the mission will be unfinished. Be ready for anything."

The crew made their way onto the bridge, Tazuna safely in line of sight, when they heard it. Zabuza had spoken. "Good to see you're alright, Kakashi. I'd hate to have healed up only to fight you at half strength. But... I should probably test out these brats of yours first. I wouldn't want the famous Namikaze Naruto to be an easy kill, not by a long shot. And the Last Uchiha, Uchiha Sasuke as well! What a high-profile team you have here. The sharingan is worth millions if you can get it nowadays, and the Namikaze is... he's worth an entire nation. Quite frankly, I have no need of the bridge builder anymore. The ones you should be worried about, are your shaking students, Kakashi!"

It was true, Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura were all shaking, but not from what Zabuza was thinking of. As water clones appeared in front of them, Naruto and Sasuke exploded at them, flashes of metal in hand. Sakura was too slow to react, and Kakashi rescued her from her own. Silently, she cursed her weakness as Naruto and Sasuke spoke up. "We aren't shaking from fear, Zabuza." Naruto continued. "We're shaking, from excitement!"

* * *

Elsewhere, Gai, Lee, and Tenten made swift work of a crew of bandits attacking the house. Tenten's skillful display of weaponry after capture helped them to spill the beans about Zabuza's plan, and they dashed out to the bridge, hoping to make it in time.

Neji caught sight of the entire encounter at the house, and, reading the lips of the captured man, struck out at his own fervent pace to the bridge. His orders were simple and clear when the mission was given. Protect Namikaze Naruto at all costs. As he closed in on the bridge, he lost sight of the confrontation, as a thick mist blocked his telescopic vision. He'd have to get closer for the true power of the Byakugan to take effect.

* * *

Under the cover of the fog, Zabuza had effectively seperated Kakashi from his team, Sakura from the others, and had Sasuke and Naruto sealed in some kind of ice prison. His accomplice was apparently a long lost bloodline from Kiri. However, as long as Kakashi could sense that the chakra in the ice prison didn't spike too high, he could tell that Zabuza wasn't in it. It was impossible to tell where he was elsewhere, however, since his chakra in the fog overpowered what little he let out in combat. Their battle, for now, was an uneasy stalemate.

Naruto and Sasuke weren't so lucky. Naruto, while he had some amount of speed on his side, was vulnerable to the needle attacks of Haku, Zabuza's apprentice. Sasuke was never the target, and as Naruto slowly burned off his chakra, Sasuke took the time to observe the pattern of attack their opponent used, as per the plan. As the battle dragged on, Naruto was starting to wear thin. He had managed to avoid any serious pressure points using clones and careful movement, but he couldn't do that much longer. But Sasuke could see something Naruto couldn't. He could see Haku. He could see the needles, predict their path, predict Haku's path. A smirk crossed his lips, and seconds later, a blast of flame did as well. Haku escaped with a singed cloak, and a more dangerous target than the incapable Naruto.

The battle wore on for only a few seconds more, and then Haku noticed. Naruto wasn't paying as much attention as before since Sasuke had taken over. He could knock the kid out in one shot, grab the body, and signal Zabuza to blow the bridge and confuse any potential pursuers. Haku phased out of his mirror, Sasuke's eyes still dead on, a new Sharingan blazing within them. He looked pointedly at the Uchiha before making the throw at Naruto's back. What happened next would be out of the hands of man.

* * *

Sasuke perceived, predicted, and understood the danger of the attack on Naruto, and acted accordingly. He did what any good Konoha Shinobi would do. He took a fatal hit for his team mate. It was honorable. It was what his hero after the coup, Obito, had done many years ago. Even as he could feel the needles pressing on his arteries and veins, cutting off blood flow to his brain, he felt at ease. He died to protect his friend, and that was worth so much more than living without him.

* * *

Naruto was struck with a sensation he had never truly experienced before. Grief. Sasuke collapsed in his arms, taking a hit from behind him. The senbon acted fast, his lips were already bluish, and his eyes dull. Vague last words escaped him, and Naruto could no longer feel a heartbeat. The blond had lost pets before, and felt sad. He had lost friends to fights before, and felt crushed. He had never once lost a friend to death. His insides burned. Even with virtually no chakra left to make him feel the warmth of life, he ached with feverish heat. His chest tightened, and he screamed.

Haku watched as the Uchiha allowed himself to die for his friend, and contemplated the locations of the senbon in his neck and chest. They were a more crude version of the act he had put on with Zabuza, and had a smaller chance of survival. However, if the needles were removed, he would be dead permanently. Zabuza wanted him alive, for the bounty a Sharingan could give. And then Namikaze screamed. At first, it was anguish. As human an emotion as even Haku felt at times. It changed to loneliness, mixed with despair, and even further, to anger. Then it took on a force with it. From anger, it became rage, from rage, it became a bloodlust. From there, it became a lust to kill, aided by an intense, hot pressure in his chest. _Ki, a violent form of Killing Intent that leaves real, physical effects in it's wake. Very few people in the world can create Ki..._ The blond was barreling towards the mirror Haku was in, and he felt a very pressing urge to get out of it immediately. The mirror shattered behind him, and he became worried, so he threw a volley of senbon at Namikaze. He dodged, and actually gained distance on him before he could reach the mirror, and Haku became terrified. The boy grabbed the hem of his pantleg just before he could reach the mirror, and he knew he was done for.

* * *

Kakashi froze in surprise, sensing the violent, overpowering sensation of Ki behind him. He had only suffered the sensation of Ki once, when Kushina was pregnant and suffering from a very scary mood swing. He also sensed that the fluctuations in Zabuza's own chakra had stopped as well. He stopped moving to notice it, too. "Kakashi, I'm surprised. I didn't take you for a Ki user. It's rather stupid to attempt to use it on a master of Killing Intent, however. Especially at such a low level!"

Kakashi looked directly in front of him. Zabuza was there, he gave it away by mistaking the other Ki for his own. "That isn't mine. It's coming from inside the ice."

Zabuza suddenly became visible. "What?"

* * *

Neji had seen many things with his eyes, those special eyes envied by many. All chakra was different. It was like looking at a person's face. It displayed their emotions naturally, without facade, without impurity. That is why the Hyuuga Clan married so carefully. When they looked at a partner, they did not see their outward beauty, they saw the inward soul, and heart. Never before had he seen a heart so vile when he reached the bridge. Upon seeing it, he immediately wretched on the ground before him, his eyes deactivating out of reactionary instinct. "There has never been a face so ugly at the heart... as that! Namikaze Naruto... what has happened to you?"

* * *

"UUUOAAAHHHH!"

The animal cries of the son of the Flash echoed off the remaining ice mirrors, but Haku could barely hear them any longer. He had long since lost all sensation in his legs and arms, and now his vision and hearing were wobbling and failing him. The blurry image of the blond slamming into his chest for the third time focused just long enough to feel the rushing pain it brought with it. "Zabuza-sama! Help me!" He wasn't able to speak after that, Naruto had punched his vocal chords shut.

* * *

**_...Kill them, they deserve to die for what they did to you!_**

**_...If you aren't fast, they'll kill you first!_**

**_...They want to eat you!_**

**_...They want to laugh at you!_**

**_...They've always been planning this, from the very second they saw you!_**

**_...They want to kill you!_**

**_...THEY WANT TO TAKE YOUR POWER!_**

"UUOOOAAAHHHHH!"

_No thought. No pain. Needles in my body, unrestricting, unfelt. INVINCIBLE! See the bad one. The bad one killed him. The bad one killed the good one. The good one was a bad one, too. They're fighting over who is going to kill me. PAINLESS! Gotta kill the other bad one. Then kill the girl. AND I FEEL SO GOOD! Then the old man. Then the strong presences, after I take all the power the other ones have for myself. ALL THE POWER IS MINE!_

_I'll kill them all._

_

* * *

_

The fight between Kakashi and Zabuza was finished. There were more pressing issues at the moment. The Ki they both sensed from inside the dome of ice blocked out their ability to sense their respective students, and they were both worried. "Kakashi, this presence is getting more powerful by the moment. Perhaps we could delay the pleasure of our fight to handle this new enemy before it grows beyond our abilities?"

Not even bothering to look where Zabuza was at his shoulder, Kakashi eyed the dome warily. "You read my mind."

As Zabuza canceled his mist technique, the bridge cleared to reveal that the ice dome had shattered, Sasuke was dead, Haku dying, and Naruto glaring hungrily at Sakura, who was still blinking in surprise at the end of the blinding mist. He blurred out of Sakura's vision, and the Mist's Demon stepped back in shock. "That boy knows his father's technique?"

Kakashi could see. He saw every tensed muscle and it mollified him. "No, that's pure fast-twitch speed. I... I can't see any chakra in his muscles... at all..."

Kakashi set himself in motion instantly, barring Naruto from murdering his own crush in cold blood. Another animal howl escaped his lips, and Sakura cringed, panicking at what she saw before her. "N-n-naruto...kun?"

From behind Kakashi, the beast snarled as he looked at her, shoving back at Kakashi, who gave no ground.

At the sidelines, Zabuza noticed a Hyuuga in the distance, and that only meant that another full team had arrived from somewhere else to act as fire support. He had to run, while the Konohas were distracted by the maddened beast that was the heir to the Flash Kami. What was left of his heart was breaking as he gathered up the beaten form of Haku in his arms, and retreated to do what he could for his rapidly dying boy.

* * *

Team Gai arrived to see Neji on his hands and knees, still spitting up whenever he tried to examine the battle before him. Much of his strength had been drained by forcing his Byakugan to stay on against the better judgement of his reflexes and instincts. He had never known that there were visions ugly enough to weaken the spirit of their beholders. Tenten inspected him for wounds as Gai demanded the status report. "Naruto...san... His chakra, his face... it's disgusting, revolting, wrong... So dark... so much black, so much agony, so much hatred..."

The Jounin motioned for his team to tend to his best student, as he joined the fray to protect his friends from the child he was meant to protect in the first place.

* * *

Even with the help of a fellow jounin, Kakashi found it impossible to pin Naruto down. Whenever he got a good look in the boy's eyes, he looked as though he was possessed by a rage so pure, no man could survive being it's focus. But it was unfocused, directed at everything, and everyone. What was Naruto's body showed signs of schizophrenia and acute paranoia, telltale tics of the eyes, and shaking hands. Scratching at his ears and turning frequently, as though voices sounded behind him. All the while, the boy had lost the capacity for speech, resorting to animal roars and howls. The sharingan was not made to see the chakra system, but it could see the outpour of chakra from Naruto's body. It looked dead and unused, like a shinobi performing out-of-retirement practices, but as it continued to pour out, it simply looked animal, bordering on demonic. He could see none of the Kyuubi's influence coming from the seal, either. Whatever had happened to Naruto, was purely the fault of Naruto himself.

He and Gai began a deadly dance together, years of fighting alongside the other coming in handy as one would push the other out of the way of a kunai strike, or distract him while the other caught his breath. The dance continued for almost five minutes, when Gai tapped a special pouch in his vest. Kakashi shook his head slightly, it was not the time yet, Naruto was wearing out. The chakra pouring from his body was slowly coming down from a garden hose to a faucet, and in another minute, it had stopped altogether, along with the oppressive atmosphere and Naruto's consciousness.

At that point, Neji and the others came up the bridge, and inspected the battle area. Sasuke was dead in the remains of the mirrors, Zabuza had escaped with his subordinate, and Sakura was shaken, but fine. Tazuna was worse off, having actually suffered physically under the atmosphere that even Zabuza could not recreate. He was frozen, sitting at the edge of the bridge wall, with his back firmly planted to it. His eyes didn't move for a long time. Bad turned to worse, as Gatou appeared with a small army of thugs. Kakashi's team was too exhausted to deal with it, so Team Gai crushed them with little effort.

Inari, apparently swayed by something Naruto said earlier, had arrived with a small army of villagers at his back. They claimed that they would fight to defend their land, but upon seeing the bodies of Naruto and Sasuke, and the frozen form of his grandfather, Inari choked up, and ran to see if they were alright. He brightened greatly when Kakashi said Naruto would be fine, but felt ashamed that he had not arrived in time to save Naruto's friend. With a stir, Sasuke somehow awoke from his death, greeted by a desperate hug from Sakura and a relieved sigh from the other shinobi present. Kakashi had deemed it unnecessary to tell him why Naruto was also unconscious.

* * *

Naruto awoke some five hours later, safe and secure in Tazuna's home. The bridge builder deliberately stayed out to work late. He awoke to see Neji observing him warily through his Byakugan, and heard him call Kakashi into the room. The door locked as Neji left behind Kakashi coming in, and at that moment, everything Naruto did after seeing Sasuke die became inhumanly clear in his mind. He could not have recalled the information better had a Yamanaka entered his mind, in fact, even though they flashed by at a high speed, he felt as though he was reliving it.

Kakashi saw the memory lapse, and immediately moved to comfort the boy before it got worse. "Snap out of it, Naruto. We aren't at the bridge anymore."

The child stared into Kakashi's one eye, terrified. He remembered thinking thoughts that were insane, impossible, and wrong. Very, very wrong. But he also remembered reveling in them, almost bathing himself in the occasional spray of blood from the ice user, Haku. He felt sick, and immediately turned away and threw up on the wood floor, tears of sadness running down his face. "Kakashi-sensei! Sasuke's deadandit's allmyfault an...*sniff*Ikilled theotherguyand Itriedtohurtyou an...*sniff*I...I wanted to kill yoooouuu... oooohhhhhh..."

Kakashi patted the boy on the back, and let him cry into his shoulder for a moment. He knew, and could see clearly, that Naruto was not a shinobi right now. He was a horrified, lonely, and despairing thirteen year old boy. He needed a few minutes time. And when those few minutes were up, he sighed and spoke. "Don't worry Naruto, Sasuke is not dead."

Naruto pulled out from his shoulder, still sniffling, and looking up into his eyes hopefully and disbelievingly at once. "R-really? Is it true, Kakashi-sensei?"

Kakashi nodded down to him, and unlocked the door, motioning for the boy to come in. Sasuke stepped into the room shortly after, and the door was locked again. Naruto exploded into tears and hugged the raven-headed team mate. "Sasuke! You're okay! You're okay! I thought you were dead, and I felt so scared. You were dead, and I was so scared."

Sasuke looked up to his silver sensei, who looked down at him in return with a slight glint in his eye that could only be the forming of a tear. He hugged Naruto back.

* * *

Ta-dah! My favorite chapter by far, once i started writing it. I was secretly hoping to release both chapters as a double-whammy for it's readers, but was worried I wouldn't clean this one up in time to do it. But once I reached the last set of paragraphs, it sort of flowed. I must admit i forced myself to shed a few tears and brought up some mental anguish of my own to get a more real ending to it, but I feel that it was well worth it.

So, this is where it all starts. This is chapter one. This. is Naruto's Twisted Rage.


End file.
